EIA: Canadian Crude Oil Imports Reach Record High in U.S.

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The U.S. imported a record amount of crude oil from Canada in 2015, according to annual trade data released this week by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Canada provided four out of every 10 barrels of imported oil.

Although Canada is currently the U.S.' top source for crude oil, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Mexico are also key suppliers. In 2015, U.S. gross crude oil imports from all its suppliers averaged 7.4 million barrels per day (BBL/d). Canada provided 3.2 million BBL/d of gross crude exports, a record of 43% of total crude oil imports in the U.S.

Click right to view an EIA chart detailing the source of gross crude U.S. imports by country.

The figures come as no surprise to Jesus Davis, Industrial Info's vice president of research for the Oil & Gas Production, Pipelines and Terminals industries. Canada has been the biggest supplier to the U.S. for over 10 years, he said. "Canadian crude is extremely cheap. It doesn't have a lot of flexibility about where it goes."

According to the EIA, Canada will continue supplying large amounts of crude oil to the U.S. "Since it is so cheap, we [the U.S.] are going to keep buying it," Davis remarked.

The current crude oil pipeline project trend in Canada is to transport crude oil primarily to the country's west coast for overseas export. However, Davis added, such projects have been delayed due to environmental concerns.

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